Page 45 of Glass Hearts

Quotina is everything I had imagined and more: a sprawling mosaic of life and chaos. It reminds me of Eldor in some ways. The towering structures, the twisting alleyways, but it’s different. The air feels… alive here. Full of possibilities.

I can’t tell who’s rich and who’s not. People walk side by side, flowing together, and you wouldn’t know if they lived in gilded mansions or crumbling hovels just by looking at them. No one seems to care. Everyone belongs here.

The rich folk of Eldor? They hide behind their high walls, tucked away near the castle. But here, in the heart of Quotina, the streets are full of faces that don’t quite fit anywhere else. The outcasts, the off-beat, the nulls… they all seem to call this place home.

Music spills from every corner, blending together like a living thing.

Upbeat drums, soulful strings, and voices in a hundred different languages.

It spills over the cobbled roads. Horse-drawn carriages jostle by, their wheels clicking and clattering on the stones, and yet the people keep moving, unfazed by the chaos.

It’s dizzying, this constant rush of sound, sight, and movement.

But somehow, it’s intoxicating, too. I feel my breath catch in my chest, caught between awe and a sense of overwhelming loss.

The streets are alive in ways I’ve never known before.

This city is what Harsekeep could be if the rich folk would stop exploiting its less fortunate citizens.

As it turns out, Quotina is much more expensive than Harsekeep.

My first stop is finding an inn so I can drop off my pack and take a moment for myself.

The Rest Yer’ Head Inn is the first dose of reality for being on my own in a new city.

The price for a night at their inn is triple than what I expected.

I was able to steal a few gold coins from Randal, but it seems that he had spent most of his money on me.

Such a shame I was a poor investment, an investment with teeth.

Judging by what I have left, I will only be able to afford one night and perhaps some food. Though I could really go for a wine.

I’m used to doing my research with Lo and Valak before I make a move.

Gathering intel, making sure my targets are the kind of monsters I can live with stealing from.

But in Quotina, it’s different. I don’t have the same connections or street knowledge I had back in Harsekeep. Here, I’m flying blind.

The families, the women, the kids—they’re not the ones I’m after. I’m looking for something else. Someone else.

That’s when I spot them.

Three tall, very attractive and muscular men sit around an outdoor bar patio.

Their table is littered with empty pint glasses.

There are still a few full ones waiting.

It’s like they’re staking their claim on the space, daring anyone to approach.

Black tactical leather gear and cargo covers them from head to toe.

Weapon belts, thankfully, are currently empty.

If I were to wager, they just came from some kind of mission or project.

Mercenaries, perhaps? They’ve got that sharp, dangerous edge to them.

The kind that can turn deadly with the flick of a wrist.

I continue to size them up, my eyes narrowing as I watch their movements. They’re relaxed for now, but I can feel the threat rolling off them in waves. This is the danger that smells like big money. And it’s the kind of money I’ll be taking.

“Any mice around here looking for a bit of cheese in exchange for some help?”

Instantly, three mice, two rats, and, surprisingly, a really gangly looking cat arrive.

“What’s it to ya?” the cat asks.

“Cheese up front, toots,” a mouse says. Definitely an interesting lot in Quotina.

“See those three men over there? I need you to sneakily steal their coins. Maybe anything valuable they have. Can you do that?”

“Piece of cake. Actually, I want one of those too.”

“Depending on how much we get, sure.”

In a heartbeat, my ragtag crew of misfit animals launches into action, targeting the gruff trio of men. The cat leaps onto the table, sending mugs and tankards crashing to the floor—glass shattering, ale flying. Chaos erupts.

Then come the rats. Twenty of them—wait, twenty?

!—and thirty mice flood the scene like a tidal wave of fur and teeth.

They swarm the men, snatching up gold coins with lightning speed.

But instead of vanishing into the shadows like any self-respecting thief, they race straight to me, triumphantly dumping the stolen pouches at my feet.

I lock eyes with the furious trio and immediately take off running. Telepathically, I shoot the location of the inn I will be staying at to the messy animal gang I created. They have earned their cut.

“That was fun! We should do that again, but like, for food,” I hear one rat say.

What have I started?

Weaving through the crowded streets I aim for the shadows and corners. Turning and changing my directions on a whim. Hoping among the bustling crowds I will loose them.

After running for quite a while, it doesn’t feel like they are following me, so I must be in the clear.

Curiosity has me stopping in an alleyway to see if it was even worth collecting a new enemy in three big, scary-looking men.

Thankfully, it was: with this score I will be able to stay about a week, pay for meals and a few glasses of wine. Maybe even a few new garments.

My stomach sinks, realizing that with this sizable sum they may still try to find me. In hindsight, I probably shouldn’t have stolen from men like that for my first mark in this new city. But I don’t have the time or luxury to wait for the perfect target.

I stop at a Fromagerie and purchase a large half-wheel of cheese, and go to the general store for a fish for the cat. I think cats like fish. Cats, as much as I love them, rarely help me, so it’s hard to say.

After collecting my bargaining chips for the animals, exhausted from the day’s events, I decide to go back to the inn I spotted from the start.

The Rest Yer’ Head Inn is closest to the forest, so if I have to make a run for it and call Max, it would be the best option.

The attendant raises her eyebrow at my weird combination of foods as I take the key and head up to my small room. It is nothing special, but it’s mine.

My smile grows as it really hits me. I am no longer connected to my awful stepsisters. Living the adventure I had always dreamed of. My life really is mine to make now.

“She said she would be here! If she stands us up, I will be pissed,” I overhear unhappy chittering. Breaking my moment of revelation.

“Calm your whiskers and paws,” I say from my open window, thankfully facing the alleyway. “Here are your promised goods.”

“Fish AND cheese!? Need any more help, weird woman?”

“Maybe, but not today. Take care, everyone!” I close the window and fall onto the bed face-first.

After a brief rest and a splash of cold water to the face, a hollow ache curls in my stomach. The granola squares and berries clearly weren’t enough.

Drawn by the scent of something spiced, I drift downstairs to the inn’s pub. Warm light spills across worn wooden floors, and in the corner, a small band coaxes music from battered instruments. The rhythm hums through the floorboards, and something in my chest loosens.

A grin tugs at my mouth. I slide into a corner booth, half-hidden behind a support beam, and let the music wash over me.

“What can I do for you, doll?” A young, cute waitress comes up to my table.

“I will take your best vegetarian meal and best wine, please!”

“Sure thing, coming right up.” She leaves to put in my order.

The band changes to a slow song about love found and lost. The waitress, Flow, returns with my wine and a plate of curried vegetables and rice. It is so tasty and just what I needed. I order another wine and even treat myself to a piece of chocolate cake.

Even with all the excitement and happiness of my new adventure, the princes seem to haunt me. My mind constantly torturing me with the memories of their faces.

Couples, a few alcoholic beverages in, dance off in the corner. Swaying and looking lovingly into each other’s eyes. My heart aches; I never got a dance with my princes.

No, not mine.

“So this is what our money is going to? A subpar band and creeping on couples while eating cake and drinking wine?”

I try to let out a shriek, but a calloused hand is already over my mouth, and I can feel the sharp end of a blade on my side.

They moved so silently, I never even registered they were there.

The surly trio of men look just as menacing, if not more so, up close.

The pale man with dark red hair and a scar on his right eye makes a gesture to the waitress.

She nods and starts pouring three beers.

Not the guests I would like for this evening, that’s for sure.

“Look, I will give you back your money. Well, most of it, I don’t want any trouble.”

“Darling, you got yourself into a lot of trouble, even if you aren’t looking for it,” the dark-haired man says. His voice is gravely, his observant grey eyes boring into mine.

“We saw what you did. You somehow controlled those creatures.” The tan blonde one surmises.

“Shit,” I say under my breath. They all laugh as the waitress brings over three beers and another wine for me.

“Men! You haven’t been around in ages. Another job around these parts?”

“For a while, Flow, we hit a bit of a snag. But I think we just caught a lucky goose for the next part of our mission.”

Flow just shakes her head, looking sympathetically at me as she walks away.

“I take it your missions involve nothing fluffy and fun like petting kittens?”

They all break out in laughter.

“Oh! I like her, she will be fun. No, little thief, our work calls for a little more blood than that.” My heart hurts at the little thief nickname.

“It’s Ella, please don’t call me little thief.” The last time a group of men stole me and called me their little thief, it did not end well for my heart.

“Well, Ella. We are willing to make a deal with you. You can keep the money. But in exchange for us being absolute gentlemen about everything, you will have to assist us in our next mission,” the black-haired man with dark skin says after taking a large sip of his beer.

“Which is?”

“We need to acquire King Cobra scales and venom. The last time we got close to one, we almost lost Jax here.” The black-haired man nods to the blonde man, Jax.

“It was a rough recovery.” Jax shakes. “So, since you can clearly order animals about, maybe you can order the snake to give us its goods.”

“Well, I don’t order them around, I can just communicate with them. It’s up to them whether or not they choose to listen.”

“Same difference. So you in? Or do we need to cut off your pretty little head? It would be a shame, and a bit of an inconvenience for us.”

I pale at the shitty choices I have.

“How did you even find me? I didn’t hear or see you all chasing me?”

“Smith here,” Jax points to the red-haired man, “is a shifter. He was able to catch your scent and follow you. He is exceptional at tracking.” He laughs. “So if you are planning to run away from us, it’s not going to happen, Ella.” He snarls my name.

Well, fuck. I am definitely in a pickle.

“I just gained my damn freedom, and yet here I am back in the clutches of pushy and controlling men.” I sigh and take a large gulp of wine.

“I take that as a yes to helping us,” Smith grunts, smiling.

“Is it helping if it’s against my will?”

They all clink my half-empty wine glass and laugh. I am definitely not laughing.

“So what exactly are you guys? Mercenaries? You are Jax and Smith. What’s your name?”

“We are the best damned mercenaries in Velora! I am Elliah.” Elliah rests his hand on his heart, I notice all the scars and calluses.

“So what’s this about you just gaining your freedom? Is that why you are stealing from unsuspecting innocent men?”

“Would you really call yourselves innocent men?” I raise my eyebrow.

They again, all laugh. Jovial bunch, it seems.

“Touché, Ella.” They all downed the rest of their beers.

Three attractive women advance to our table.

Jax turns to me while putting his hands around the waist of the redhead.

Smith is already kissing the brunette’s neck.

Elliah nods to the other lady, but makes no forward advances as she sways next to him.

Apparently, my new ‘friends’ aren’t shy. If this is their type, I am at least definitely in the clear of them trying anything romantic.

“That’s our cue, Miss Ella, you better get some rest. We will be leaving bright and early tomorrow morning!”

And with that, the mercenary menaces leave my table.

Well, so much for freedom.